Twenty-Five: Into The Bathroom…But Out Of The Closet.

As soon as Emily and Isaac pulled into the Hastings family's sound driveway Saturday evening, a valet rushed to the car door and asked their IDs. "We want to get a record of everyone who's here," the guy. Emily noticed there was a gun on his belt.

Isaac glanced at the gun, then at Emily. He touched her hand. "Don't worry. Ian's probably halfway around the world today."

Emily tried to hide her wince. Ian had been missing for a full day now. Emily had told Isaac she was one of Ali's best friends and had attended the trial yesterday, leaving out, of course, that she had been receiving threatening notes from New A—who Emily was convinced was Ian. Unfortunately, Emily had a pretty good idea that Ian wasn't halfway around the world by now, but still here in Rosewood, digging for some big secret he thought the cops were hiding.

Part of Emily was furious at Spencer for not telling them about Ian's eerie visit sooner. At the same time, Emily understood why Spencer hadn't told. Spencer had shown them the note that Ian had sent after his visit, the one that said Spencer would suffer if she said a word about it to anyone. Besides, it wasn't like Emily had said much about her own A note, the one that threatened to tell Isaac if Emily told about A. It seemed Ian was as cunning as Mona had been, knowing precisely how to keep all of them quiet.

Still, right after Spencer admitted the truth, the girls had tried to grab a cop to tell him what had happened, but the entire Rosewood PD was already off on an Ian manhunt. Spencer's parents had debated whether holding tonight's fund-raiser was even appropriate, but they'd decided to just be very, very cautious. Spencer had called Emily and her old friends last night and begged them to please come so they could all be together for moral support.

Emily tugged at the bottom hem of the dress she'd borrowed from Carolyn and stepped out of the Volvo. Spencer's house was all lit up like a birthday cake. Wilden's police car was parked front and center, and a few more valets were directing traffic. As Isaac took her hand, Emily noticed Seth Cardiff, her ex-boyfriend Ben's best friend, getting out of a car behind them. She tensed her shoulders and grabbed Isaac's arm.

"This way," she said urgently, pushing Isaac roughly up the front walk. Then she saw Eric Kahn standing on the porch. If Eric was there, Noel was undoubtedly close by.

"Er, wait." She pulled Isaac into a shadowy spot next to a large, snow-laden shrub and pretended like she was searching through her silver clutch. The wind shook the branches on the big evergreen next to them. Emily suddenly wondered if what she was doing was nuts. Here she was, standing in the dark, when a crazy murderer was on the lam.

Isaac laughed uncomfortably. "Is anything wrong? Are you hiding from someone?"

"Of course not," Emily lied. Eric Kahn finally went back inside. Emily straightened and started up the path again. She took a deep breath and opened the front door. Bright light accosted them from inside. Here goes.

A string quartet was set up in the corner, playing a dainty minuet. Women in silk and sequined party dresses laughed with men in sleek, dark suits. A waitress glided by Emily and Isaac, carrying a large tray of full glasses of champagne. Isaac plucked two glasses off the tray and handed one to her. Emily took a sip, trying not to gulp.

"Emily." Spencer stood in front of her, wearing a short black dress with feather detail around the hem and incredibly high sling-backs. Her eyes fell to Isaac's hand, which was curled around Emily's. A wrinkle formed over her brow.

"Uh, Isaac, this is Spencer. Her parents are throwing this," Emily explained quickly, slowly unwinding her hand from Isaac's. "Spencer, this is Isaac." She wanted to add, my boyfriend, but there were way too many people around.

"Rick Colbert, the caterer tonight, is my dad," Isaac explained, holding his hand out for Spencer to shake. "Have you met him?"

"I didn't handle any of the arrangements," Spencer said sourly. She turned back to Emily. "So did Wilden tell you the rules? We're not allowed to go outside. If someone needs to go to their car, tell Wilden and he'll go for you. And then when you're ready to leave, he'll escort you."

"Wow." Isaac rubbed his hair. "You guys are really taking this seriously."

"It is serious," Spencer snapped.

When she started to turn away, Emily grabbed her arm. She wanted to ask Spencer if she'd told Wilden about Ian's visit, like she promised she would. But Spencer shrugged her off. "I can't talk right now," she said abruptly, and disappeared into the crowd.

Isaac rocked on his heels. "Well, she's friendly." He looked around the room, at the priceless Oriental rug in the enormous foyer, the stonework on the wall, and the portraits of old Hastings ancestors all over the gallery. "So this is how kids from your school live, huh?"

"Not all of us," Emily corrected him.

Isaac walked over to console table and ran his hands over an ornate Sevres tea set. Emily wanted to steer him away from it—Spencer always told Emily and the others that it had once belong to Napoleon—but she also didn't want Isaac to think she was scolding him. "I bet you live somewhere even bigger than this," Isaac teased. "Like a nineteen-bedroom compound with an indoor lap pool."

"Wrong." Emily punched him lightly. "There are two indoor lap pools—one for one, and one for my sister. I don't like sharing."

"So when am I going to see this magnificent house of yours?" Isaac took Emily's hands swung them back and forth. "I let you into my house, after all. With my mom. Sorry about that, by the way."

"Please." When Emily had picked up Isaac at his house, his mother fawned over them, taking pictures and offering Emily homemade cookies. Mrs. Colbert reminded Emily of her own mom. They both collected Hummel figurines and wore the same pale blue Crocs. They could probably be BFFs. "I thought she was sweet," Emily said. "Just like you."

Isaac blushed and pulled her close. Emily giggled, thrilled to be pressed up against him in his fancy suit, even if he had borrowed it from his dad. He smelled like sandalwood and cinnamon gum, and she had the sudden urge to kiss him in front of everyone.

Then she heard a snicker behind them. Noel Kahn and James Freed loitered in the arched doorway to the living room. Both wore expensive black suits, and their red-and-blue striped Rosewood Day ties were knotted loosely around their necks.

"Emily Fields!" James crowded. His eyes swept up and down Isaac, a perplexed look settling over his face. He'd probably first thought Isaac was a butch girl in a tux.

"Hi, Emily," Noel said in his lazy, half-surfer, half-rich-boy voice, his eyes on Isaac too. "I see you brought a friend. Or is it a date?"

Emily took a small step backward. Noel and James licked their lips like predatory wolves. Both were no doubt flipping through their list of snarky things they could say next—Slumming it with the boys tonight? Watch it, dude, Emily Fields is kinky~ she might drag you to some lesbian strip club! The longer they remained quiet, the more horrifying whatever they said was sure to be.

"I have to…," Emily sputtered. She whirled around, nearly bumping into Principal Appleton and Mrs. Hastings, who were both sipping cocktails. She blindly stumbled through the foyer, wanting to be as far away from Noel and James as she could.

"Emily?" Isaac called behind her. She kept running. The heavy library doors were just ahead. Emily wrenched the door open fast and ducked inside, breathing hard.

It was warm inside the library, smelled like a mix of old books and expensive leather shoes. Emily's eyes blurred, then readjusted. Her stomach lurched in horror. The room was packed full of kids from Rosewood Day. Naomi Zeigler's long legs dangled over an arm of one of the leather chairs, and Hanna's stepsister-to-be, Kate, perched Queen like on the chaise. Mason Byers and some of the other lacrosse boys were loitering near a bookcase, no doubt ogling Spencer's dad's books of obscure French photography, which consisted largely of soft-porn shots of naked women. Mike Montgomery and a pretty brunette were sharing a glass of wine and Jenny Kestler and Kristen Cullen were nibbling on crusty bread and cheese.

They all turned to look at Emily. And when Isaac burst into the room behind her and placed his arm on Emily's bare shoulder, their eyes feasted on him, too.

It was as if an evil magic spell had stunned Emily into suspended animation. She'd thought she could handle her peers, but with everyone together like this…everyone who knew her secrets, everyone who had been there the day A circulated that picture of Emily and Maya kissing. It was just too much to take.

She couldn't even look at Isaac when she turned around and shoved her way back out the library door. Noel and James were still leaning against the wall, passing a bottle of Patron back and forth. "You're back!" Noel cried gleefully. "Who's that dude you're with? If you're playing for our team again, why didn't you ask me out first?"

Emily bit her lip and leapt her head down. She had to get out of here. She had to escape. But she couldn't find Wilden, who could escort her back to her car, and she didn't want to go outside alone. Then she saw the Hastingses' powder room right off the kitchen. The door was slightly open, and the light was off. Emily scampered inside, but when she went to shut the door, someone's foot was in the way.

Isaac pushed his way in. "Hey." He sounded annoyed. "What is going on?"

Emily let out a small squeak and shot to the very corner of the room, her arms tightly around her chest. The powder room was bigger than most master baths, with a little seating area, an ornate mirror, and a separate room for the toilet. Underneath the heavy, cloying smell of the jasmine candle on the vanity was a slight tinge of vomit.

Isaac didn't follow her to the corner. He remained by the door, his posture very straight and guarded. "You're acting kind of…crazy," he said.

Emily settled down on the peach-colored chaise and picked at a tiny run in his stockings, too nervous to answer. Her secrets throbbed painfully inside of her.

"Are you embarrassed to be seen with me?" Isaac went on. "Is it because I told that Spencer girl my dad was the caterer? Should I not have said that?"

Emily pressed her palms to her eyes. She couldn't believe Isaac thought her weird behavior was his fault. Again. A feeling of dread slowly settled down around her shoulders like a sheet, even if she managed to divert this disaster, there would be another one, and another one. And finally, at the end of all that, there would be A…Ian. And now that Ian had escaped, he was capable of anything. Let this be a warning, he'd written after Maya had shown up at the Chinese restaurant. Ian had Emily right where he wanted her.

Unless she made things right.

Emily looked up at Isaac, her throat tight. She just had to get this over with quick, like pulling a Band-Aid. "Do you remember that girl in China Rose?" she blurted out. Isaac looked at her blankly, shrugging. Emily took a deep breath. "She and I used to be…a couple."

Everything else tumbled out at lightning speed. She talked about how she'd kissed Ali in her tree house in seventh grade. And how she'd fallen for Maya instantly, intoxicated by her banana gum. Emily explained the A notes, how she'd tried to date Toby Cavanaugh to prove to herself that she liked guys, how a picture of her and Maya kissing had been passed around at a swim meet, and how the whole school knew. She told Isaac about Tree Tops, the gay-away program her parents had forced her into, and that the real reason she'd gone to Iowa was because her parents couldn't accept her sexuality. She also said she'd met a girl named Trista in Iowa and had kissed her, too.

When she finished, she glanced up at Isaac. He looked green and was tapping one foot steadily and nervously…or maybe angrily.

Emily lowered her head. "I understand if you don't ever want to speak to me again. I didn't want to hurt you, though—I just thought you'd hate me if you knew. But even though I didn't tell you all this, everything I told you about how I felt about you, that I wanted you to be my boyfriend, that I really liked you, all of that—it's all true. I thought it wasn't possibly for me to like a guy, but I guess it is."

The little room was silent. Even the party seemed to have quieted down. Isaac ran his hands along the edge of his tie. "So, does this mean you're…bi? Or what?"

Emily dug her nails into the chaise's plushy silk cushions. It would be so much easier if she just said she was straight, and that the stuff that had happened with Maya and Ali and Trista had been confused mistakes. But she knew that wasn't true.

"I don't know what I am," Emily answered quietly. "I wish I did, but I don't. Maybe I just like…people. Maybe it's the person, not necessarily their gender."

Isaac's eyes lowered. He let out a small, deflated sigh. When Emily heard him turn, her chest throbbed with despair. In seconds, Isaac would turn the knob, walk out the door, and be gone forever. Emily pictured Isaac's mother standing in the front doorway, eagerly wanting to know how their fairy-take date had gone. Her face would fall when Isaac told her the truth. Emily's a what? she'd gasp.

"Hey." Hot breath tickled the top of her head. Isaac loomed above her, an unreadable expression on his face. Without saying a word, he wrapped his arms around her. "It's okay."

"W-what?" Emily gasped.

"It's okay," he repeated quietly. "And I accept it. I accept you."

Emily blinked in disbelief. "You…do?"

Isaac shook his head. "Honestly? It's kind of a relief. I thought you were acting crazy because of me. Or because you already had a boyfriend."

Thankful tears came to Emily's eyes. "Not much of a chance of that," she blurted.

Isaac snorted. "I guess not, huh?" He took Emily into his arms, kissing the side of her head.

As they were hugging, Lanie Iler, one of Emily's swimming teammates, stuck her head into the bathroom, thinking it was unoccupied. "Oops," she said. When Lanie saw Emily in the bathroom, hugging a guy, her eyes grew wide. But Emily no longer cared. Let them see, she thought. Let Lanie go back and tell everyone. Her days of hiding things were officially over.